Menu toggle
Navigation
Text

Olga Boznańska

Olga Boznańska (1865-1940) painting at an easel in the studio of her home in ul. Wolska 21 in Kraków, ca. 1920. Paper photo, 12.2 x 16.9 cm, National Museum in Warsaw/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie, Inv. Nr. DI 97315/1
©
Muzeum cyfrowe http://cyfrowe.mnw.art.pl

The painter of portraits, children and interiors is one of the most outstanding personalities amongst the several hundred Polish artists in the "Munich School" at the end of the 19th century. After training as an artist in Kraków she moved to Munich in 1886 to continue her studies, and three years later she opened her own studio. She spent her summers in Kraków. Today she is almost completely forgotten in Germany. By contrast she is regarded in Poland as one of the most important Polish painters. In 2014/15 the National Museums in Kraków and Warsaw honoured her with comprehensive exhibitions and publications.

Mediathek Sorted

Media library
  • Ill. 1: Girl in a Hat with a Feather, 1887 - Study of a Girl in a Hat with a Feather, München 1887. Oil on canvas on paperboard, 58 x 44 cm
  • Ill. 2: Monk with Wine, 1887 - Monk with Wine, München 1887. Oil on canvas, 81.5 x 65,2 cm, signed top right: Boznańska Munich 87
  • Ill. 3: Young Woman with a Red Parasol, 1888 - Portrait of a Young Woman with a Red Parasol, 1888, Oil on canvas, 88 x 60 cm
  • Ill. 4: Gypsy Woman, 1888 - Portrait of a Woman (Gypsy Woman), 1888. Oil on canvas, 65 x 53 cm
  • Ill. 5: Florists, 1889 - Florists, 1889. Oil on canvas, 65 x 86 cm
  • Ill. 6: Japanese Woman, 1889 - Japanese Woman, 1889. Oil on wood, 37 x 21 cm
  • Ill. 7: From a Walk, 1889 - From a Walk (Lady in a White Dress), 1889. Oil on canvas, 161.5 x 100 cm
  • Ill. 8: Portrait of Zofia Federowicz, 1890 - Portrait of Zofia Federowicz, 1890. Oil on canvas, 150 x 100 cm
  • Ill. 9: Breton Woman II, 1890 - Breton Woman, version II, 1890. Oil on canvas 53 x 42 cm
  • Ill. 10: In the Orangery, 1890 - In the Orangery, 1890. Oil on canvas, 235 x 180 cm
  • Ill. 11: On Good Friday, 1890 - On Good Friday, 1890. Oil on canvas, 240 x 158 cm
  • Ill. 12: Girl with a Vegetable Basket, 1891 - Girl with a Vegetable Basket in the Garden, 1891. Oil on canvas, 125 x 85 cm
  • Ill. 13: Boy in School Uniform, ca. 1890 - Portrait of a Boy in School Uniform, ca. 1890. Oil on canvas, 180 x 100 cm
  • Ill. 14: Portrait of a Woman, 1891 - Portrait of a Woman, 1891. Oil on canvas, 122 x 80 cm
  • Ill. 15: Woman with a Japanese Parasol, 1892 - Portrait of a Woman with a Japanese Parasol, 1892. Oil on canvas, 65 x 52 cm
  • Ill. 16: Olga Boznańska, 1893 - Kasper Żelechowski (1863-1942): Portrait of Olga Boznańska with a Japanese Parasol, Krakòw 1893, photograph on albumen print, 18,4 x 11,5 cm
  • Ill. 17: In the Studio, ca. 1894 - In the Studio, ca. 1894. Oil on paperboard, 49 x 75 cm
  • Ill. 18: Portrait of Paul Nauen, 1893 - Portrait of Paul Nauen, 1893. Oil on canvas, 121 x 91 cm
  • Ill. 19: Self Portrait, 1893 - Self portrait, 1893. Oil on canvas, 70 x 57 cm
  • Ill. 20: Self Portrait, 1896 - Self portrait, 1896. Oil on paperboard, 55.2 x 42.5 cm
  • Ill. 21: Self Portrait, ca. 1897 - Self portrait, ca. 1897. Pastel on paper, 102 x 65 cm
  • Ill. 22: Woman with a Girl, ca. 1893 - Study of a Woman with a Girl, ca. 1893. Oil on paperboard, 56.5 x 43 cm
  • Ill. 23: Girl with Chrysanthemums, 1894 - Girl with Chrysanthemums, 1894. Oil on paperboard, 88.5 x 69 cm
  • Ill. 24: Woman in a White Blouse, 1894 - Portrait of a Woman in a White Blouse, 1894. Oil on paperboard, 67 x 48 cm
  • Ill. 25: Girl in the Garden, 1896 - Portrait of a Woman in a White Blouse, 1894. Oil on paperboard, 67 x 48 cm
  • Ill. 26: Two Children on the Stairs, ca. 1898 - Two Children on the Stairs, ca. 1898. Oil on paperboard, 102 x 75 cm
  • Ill. 27: Studio in Munich, 1896/98 - Olga Boznańska in her Studio in Georgenstraße, Munich, 1896/98. Paper photo, 12.5 x 9.4 cm
  • Ill. 28: Portrait of Anna Saryusz Zaleska, 1899 - Portrait of the painter Anna Saryusz Zaleska, 1899. Oil on paperboard, 68 x 64 cm
  • Ill. 29: Portrait of Antoni Kamieński, 1899 - Portrait of the painter Antoni Kamieński, 1899. Oil on paperboard, 95 x 49.5 cm
  • Ill. 30: Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Blouse, 1899 - Portrait of a Woman in a Blue Blouse, 1899. Oil on cardboard auf paperboard, 69 x 43 cm
  • Ill. 31: Grandmother’s Name Day, ca. 1900 - Grandmother’s Name Day, ca. 1900. Oil on canvas, 79 x 60 cm
  • Ill. 32: Two Girls, 1906. - Portrait of Two Girls, Helena und Władysława Chmielarczyk, 1906. Oil on cardboard, 95 x 67 cm
  • Ill. 33: Portrait of Franciszek Mączyński, 1902 - Portrait of the Architect Franciszek Mączyński Franciszek Mączyński, 1902. Oil on paperboard, 72 x 68.5 cm
  • Ill. 34: Portrait of Maria Koźniewska-Kalinowska, 1903 - Portrait of the Painter Maria Koźniewska-Kalinowska, 1903. Oil on canvas, 73 x 53.5 cm
  • Ill. 35: Portrait of August Radwan, 1904/05 - Portrait of the Pianist August Radwan, 1904/05. Oil and tempera on canvas on paperboard, 75 x 80.3 cm
  • Ill. 36: Portrait of Zofia Kirkor-Kiedroń, 1903-05 - Portrait of Zofia Kirkor-Kiedroń (née Grabska), 1903-05. Oil on paperboard, 99 x 68 cm
  • Ill. 37: Portrait of Ludwig Puget, 1907 - Portrait of Ludwig Puget, 1907. Oil on canvas, 47 x 38 cm
  • Ill. 38: Portrait of Jadwiga Papara, 1907 - Portrait of Miss Jadwiga Papara from Lviv, 1907. Oil on paperboard, 117 x 91 cm
  • Ill. 39: Lady in a Red Hat, post 1900 - Portrait of a Lady in a Red Hat, post 1900. Pastel, 75 x 56.5 cm
  • Ill. 40: Young Man in Black, ca. 1900 - Portrait of a Young Man in Black, ca. 1900. Oil on paperboard, 92 x 46.5 cm
  • Ill. 41: Woman in a Brown Dress, ca. 1906 - Portrait of a Woman in a Brown Dress, ca. 1906. Oil on paperboard, 98.5 x 74.5 cm
  • Ill. 42: Bronze Bust, 1902 - Bolesław Biegas (1877-1954): Bust of Olga Boznańska, 1902. Bronze, 52 x 27 x 18 cm
  • Ill. 43: In the Studio in Kraków, 1906 - Interior of the Artist’s Studio in Kraków, 1906. Oil on paperboard, 50.5 x 73 cm
  • Ill. 44: Self Portrait, ca. 1906 - Self Portrait, ca. 1906. Pastel, gouache, chalk on cardboard, 74 x 43.5 cm
  • Ill. 45: Place des Ternes in Paris, ca. 1907 - Place des Ternes in Paris, ca. 1907. Oil on paperboard, 14 x 24 cm
  • Ill. 46: In the Studio, 1913 - In the Studio, 1913. Oil on paperboard, 68 x 44 cm
  • Ill. 47: View from the Krakòw Studio, ca. 1914 - View from the Krakòw Studio, ca. 1914. Oil on paperboard, 50 x 39 cm
  • Ill. 48: Self Portrait, post 1913 - Self Portrait, post 1913. Oil on paperboard, 55.2 x 46 cm
  • Ill. 49: Olga Boznańska, ca. 1913 - Olga Boznańska on the Sofa with a Cigarette in the Studio in her House in ul. Wolska 21 in Kraków, ca. 1913. Photograph, 16.9 x 12.2 cm
  • Ill. 50: Still Life, 1918 - Still Life, 1918. Oil on paperboard, 38.5 x 57.5 cm
  • Ill. 51: Poppies, post 1920 - Poppies, post 1920. Oil on paperboard, 46 x 38 cm
  • Ill. 52: Red Flowers, 1925-30 - Red Flowers, 1925-30. Oil on cardboard, 35 x 25.5 cm
  • Ill. 53: Flowers, ca. 1930 - Flowers, ca. 1930. Oil on wood, 29.5 x 41 cm
  • Ill. 54: Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1922 - Portrait of a Lady with a Threefold Pearl Necklace, ca. 1922. Oil on paperboard, 80 x 65 cm
  • Ill. 55: Portrait of Mrs Drzewiecka, post 1925 - Portrait of Mrs Drzewiecka, post 1925. Oil on cardboard, 50 x 35 cm
  • Ill. 56: Portrait of Miss Ellen, post 1925 - Portrait of Miss Ellen, post 1925. Oil on cardboard, 79 x 51.5 cm
  • Ill. 57: Portrait of Dr. Melania Lipińska, ca. 1926 - Portrait of Dr. Melania Lipińska, ca. 1926. Oil on paperboard, 62.5 x 41.5 cm
  • Ill. 58: Portrait of Miss Syrewicz, 1926 - Portrait of Miss Syrewicz, 1926. Oil on cardboard, 55 x 33.5 cm
  • Ill. 59: Portrait of Julia Rylska, ca. 1930 - Portrait of the writer and translator Julia Rylska, ca. 1930. Oil on cardboard, 69.5 x 48.5 cm
  • Ill. 60: Portrait of Maria Pfitzner, ca. 1930 - Portrait of Maria Pfitzner, ca. 1930. Oil on paperboard, 75 x 46 cm
  • Ill. 61: Portrait of Zofia Kulaszyńska, 1930 - Portrait of Zofia Kulaszyńska, 1930. Oil on cardboard, 47 x 35 cm

Olga Boznańska
Pages Pages Full text Full text

Pages Pages Full text Full text
Olga Boznańska – Kraków, Munich, Paris
Olga Boznańska (1865-1940) painting at an easel in the studio of her home in ul. Wolska 21 in Kraków, ca. 1920. Paper photo, 12.2 x 16.9 cm, National Museum in Warsaw/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie, Inv. Nr. DI 97315/1
©
Muzeum cyfrowe http://cyfrowe.mnw.art.pl

Nevertheless she continued to participate in exhibitions and to receive important awards. In 1925 she was awarded the highest honours at the exhibition entitled Polish Portrait/Portret Polski, mounted by the Society for the Promotion of the Fine Arts/Towarzystwo Zachęty Sztuk Pięknych in Warsaw, of which she became a member three years later. In 1928 she took part for the last time in the salon of the Société nationale des beaux-arts. Furthermore her works were exhibited in the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Science in New York. In 1929 she took part for the last time in exhibitions at the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh and the Salon des Tuileries in Paris. In August 1930 she travelled to Kraków where she remained for a year. There, in the following year, the TPSP organised a solo exhibition for her. In 1932 she exhibited for the last time in the Artists Association Sztuka in Warsaw. In the following years her works could be seen in group exhibitions of Polish art in Moscow (1933), Berlin and Warsaw (1935), Paris and Warsaw (1937), as well as in Poznań (1938). A solo exhibition of twenty-seven of her works took place in 1938 at the 21st Venice Biennale.

By the end of the twenties her financial situation had deteriorated dramatically. In 1932 her income, which mostly came from renting her house in Kraków, was no longer enough for her to travel to her home town. The Polish capital and the national Polish Culture Fund supported her to the tune of several thousand złoty in 1934. In the same year the suicide of her sister Iza led her to a physical and mental breakdown. In 1936 the Polish literary historian and publicist, Zygmunt Lubicz-Zaleski (1882-1967) purchased a few of her paintings for the Polish state. In May 1937, thanks to the commitment of the painter, Maja Berezowska (1893-1978) a Committee of Friends of Olga Boznańska/Komitet Przyjaciół Olgi Boznańskiej was set up to collect money to purchase her works through the Warsaw National Gallery. In July 1939, in her Paris studio, she was awarded the Commanders Cross of the Order Polonia Restituta by the cultural attaché at the Polish embassy. Olga Boznańska died in the Hôpital de la Pitié on 26th October 1940 and was buried at the Cimetière des Champeaux (the cemetry of the Polish community) in the town of Montmorency, north of Paris.

 

Axel Feuß, September 2017

 

 

Further reading:

Helena Blumówna: Olga Boznańska, 1865-1940. Materiały do monografii, Warsaw 1949

Olga Boznańska (1865-1940). Wystawa zbiorowa, National Museum in Kraków/Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie, Kraków 1960

Helena Blum: Olga Boznańska, Warsaw 1974

Münchner Maler im 19. Jahrhundert, vol 1, München 1982, S. 121 f.

Saur Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon, vol 13, München/Leipzig 1996, p. 485 f.

Jednodniówka – Eintagszeitung. Neuausgabe, edited by Zbigniew Fałtynowicz / Eliza Ptaszyńska, Muzeum Okręgowe w Suwałkach, Suwałki 2008, also in the catalogue of the exhibition “Signatur - anders geschrieben. Anwesenheit polnischer Künstler im Lichte von Archivalien“, Polnisches Kulturzentrum, München 2008

Ewa Bobrowska/Urszula Kozakowska-Zaucha (eds.): Olga Boznańska (1865-1940), exhibition catalogue of the National Museum Kraków/Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie, Kraków 2014 (separate Polish and English editions; further reading there)

Renata Higersberger (ed.): Olga Boznańska (1865-1940), exhibition catalogue of the National Museum in Warsaw/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie, Warsaw 2015 (bilingual Polish/English)

Olga Boznańska (1865-1940) painting at an easel in the studio of her home in ul. Wolska 21 in Kraków, ca. 1920. Paper photo, 12.2 x 16.9 cm, National Museum in Warsaw/Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie, Inv. Nr. DI 97315/1
©
Muzeum cyfrowe http://cyfrowe.mnw.art.pl
Read full text on one page
Porta Polonica